my kemper findings...

  • hey fellas,


    this is my first forum post ever, just to let you know. in the end, this seems to be nice place (apart from one thread that i keep ignoring...) and that little kemper is definitely worth some lines...


    this might be getting a reply to a complete bunch of threads, so i felt like just posting the whole findings. like most of you i tried to like the other modeling stuff as well, all generations, but it never happened to me. i'm not too much of a fx - guy, so the main concern was always about the amp sounds. this and the idea of a portable, versatile and fun package. for me, the axe didn't deliver any of this. of course i've spent months of tweaking, because everyone seemed to love it, but honestly: i gave up long time before i realised it. so actually it's not the axe II's fault, that i didn't like it. i was fed up tweaking before that. i just tried briefly, liked the new speaker-ir's way more, started to turn some of the new dials, thought it might get interesting, liked the usb-direct feature, realised that i was at the beginning of another month or year of getting things to taste and sold it.


    so, while fiddling with my axe-edit, i've come to another solution for may small, portable, fun package. 1x12 deluxe clone from audio amp co. if you ever get the chance to try one of these, take it. 12 kg amp with the loveliest, most responsive, sweetest, roundest (... i could keep going) clean sound i've ever experienced. of course, you might wanna add some stomps for overdrive, trem, reverb, a little wah, some more distortion, maybe a little booster, some extra compression, occasionally little delay... mount that on a little pedalboard, add some high quality cables and power supply and we already talking about 5k€... what, still no octaver, looper, ...?!!


    this just as a reference that i want it to sound good. i'm not the best player in the world and my skills didn't get any better in the last 10+ years. i NEED a decent sound to sound good myself and it's the only way for me to think of what i could be doing with my fingers anyway. you're right - why in hell would i ever even think again about modeling? something in my pedalboard broke and it took me 3 days to figure out what... can't there be anything easier out there, giving me good tone, robust one(or few) piece solution, better sell below 5k€ AND having benefits like direct outs, presets, .... you know the list.


    i'm still not sure, why i felt like giving that kemper a try. oh yes, i remember: i stumbled across that dave cleveland nashville profiling video and was like: no f*ckin way! having that thomann 30 day money back deal helped a lot. i won't return it though. i'm still evaluating, but i'm hell of impressed. i'm not planning on repeating how well it does everything, because you fellas already know. those who don't - better check it out! those wondering about stability-issues, i didn't have any so far.


    there's still a problem i also had with the axe: proper amplification. the speaker that i might like hast still to be found. i messed with the atomics (before the kemper) and definitely hated them, had the verve 8''s when they were recomended in the fractal-world, liked them better, but not enough, rented some l'acoustics 8" koax that were great but rather pricey for being just 8", recently (with the kemper) messed with the rcf nx 10" monitor, wich i thought would fit my bill, but they just sounded like a step back towards modeling-sound. not like awfully bad, but with a plastic nuance that i can't stand anymore. compared it to some rcf TT08-A, and found them pretty amazing! bad thing: sold these when i still fought with my axe, and they were just around 1k€ that day. now, they're like 1,7k€ which again is rather expensive for just 8'' woofer. still, great sound. might be getting these. just 12 kgs, small, lightweight, easy to carry (remember? ;) 750 watts... don't compare the nx to the tt line. they're not in the same ballpark.


    i just ordered one mighty TT25-SMA to compare. given the TT soundquality and some serious bass response, this might be the killer wedge. and 20 kg is more than i would like, but still manageable.



    UPDATE: IT REALLY DELIVERS! CHECK IT OUT!



    at home i use my trusty small genelecs which could be worse, but someday i might check out the new neumanns. from all what i've heard, the should be a perfect match. someone already tried these? or the EMES black tv hr? for those headphone moments i can recommend beyerdynamic dt 990 and 770 pro.


    for switching i'm waiting for the kemper board, in the meantime kicking my little midi-mouse... which does the job for now. also waiting for that little amplifier to fill that hole in the back... i'd love to give it a try through my 1x12 custom alnico pine cabinet i was talking about...


    talking about waiting and wishing - please make it happen:


    - some octaver, maybe whammy... mono pitch is all i'd ever need...
    - some swell / reverse delays would be fancy...
    - global booster is a must! not in the layout, maybe in the rig menue, just press IA and be heard!
    - looper would be awesome/must have! and if it's only possible with that usb stick, this would even be better ;) also in the rig menue... and please countinuous through presets...
    - some conventional cab eq in the cab section would be welcome, maybe some high- & low-cut here...
    - mix parameter for all stomps! tame the green one for example...



    - AND: please gimme some floor unit! would be the ultimate portable perfect rig. skip the profiling, just make it a player of your trusty profiles with enough control...



    so, who came this far: own fault! ;) naw, sorry for the mess.


    last chapter: in the room... we've all heard the great quality of direct recordings, but for playing you need to get that sound out of the box... i already spoke of the TT08 speakers, so here is one(!) of them in what could be called the worst case scenario: concrete floor, concrete ceiling, concrete walls (all but one, this one's pure glass). we were playing rather loud (pretty much stage volume), the bad news is just that the recording is so miserable. it's just an iphone speech-memo, with the phone lying very close to the drumkit... so this is not about recording quality. it's distorted iphone bullshit of what was one hell of fun to play. kemper = keeper.



    listen at your own risk: http://snd.sc/z0z3kY

    Edited once, last by kilihahn ().

  • thanks for the warm welcome!


    i tried the rcf tt 25 sma now for a couple of weeks and all i can say is - wow! if you're in the budget and you want to unchain all of your beloved little kemper's potential, give it a try. for that purpose it's seriously the best fullrange-wedge i've heard until now (and i propably could ever imagine). my ears are bleeding and i still can't stop smiling ;)


    great attack, super defined lowend, super flat, superdry, superloud, smoooooth highend, smaller than you might expect, lighter than you might expect, absolutely touring-grade...
    a proper 12" might do as well for guitar, but to my knowledge there ain't any in this quality vs. weight vs. price-range... (i was lucky though with a 2k € deal)


    if you need stereo, i might be sorta overkill, but as a mono big bang replacement it ABSOLUTELY RULES... actually the first combination (kemper+tt25) ever(!), that made me not preferring the traditional pedals-tubestuff-guitarcab-route for live use... think of it as the smallest fullstack available ;)


    don't wanna disturb the nx 12 sma crowd! if you're happy, don't touch this one!


    if i had a wish to rcf: make a 12" version (eventually with a lilttle more coverage, say 80 degrees and a flat backside for a second positioning choice) and every fullrange-guitarplayer on this planet would be set. and there will be more & more...


    disclaimer: all just my personal findings... ;)



    and while i'm at it: big kudos to the community with more and more great profiles and you know what else... thanks fellas!

  • 3000€ at Thomann..... ;( ;( ;( I can just dream about it.....


    this one is the foh version. i got the coax-wedge (RCF TT25-SMA) which sold for 2000€ @musicstore some weeks ago. told you i was lucky ;)
    this way it was more like mono brute 15" vs. streo nx 12 sma. and man, i dig it... smooooooooth...

  • no worries, the kemper will make it sound fine... ;) seriously, that's one of the things i love about it: you don't seem to have to tweak the sound (much) for the speaker you use. it's roaring inside and ready to get shot in someone's face - with my axe i had ridiculous global eq settings whenever i plugged into a new box. a lot of pilot error as well though: i came out with pretty stupid patches to achieve the feel and sound i wanted - which didn't translate to anything... i saw similar findings in some home hifi setup thread today. happy kempers.

  • I'm sure about, my QSC on stage is fantastic, but I never take it home or in studio because the fan drive me nuts. Heck, even my 24 years old 50w SS Marshall Keyboard Amp sounds fenomenal with the Kemper! 8o 8o

    "Music is enough for a lifetime, but a lifetime is not enough for music" Serghei Rachmaninoff


  • I avoid 15" be all means - did not work for my home stereo and not for guitar use - but to each his own ;)

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  • I avoid 15" be all means - did not work for my home stereo and not for guitar use - but to each his own ;)


    yeah, i've never been a big fan of 15"ers as well, but hell, i've never been a big fan of digital guitar gear either... ;)
    many nice surprises lately...

  • I'm sure about, my QSC on stage is fantastic, but I never take it home or in studio because the fan drive me nuts. Heck, even my 24 years old 50w SS Marshall Keyboard Amp sounds fenomenal with the Kemper! 8o 8o


    and i thought we finally got rid of the fan issues... :whistling: